The double charge, in one line. Uber’s commission (hidden in the food price) and its service fee both pay for the same thing — Uber being the middleman. One toll, billed twice. The delivery fee is separate: that one pays the courier. Why Uber Eats won’t put it in one number →
Katz’s Delicatessen — 137 years old, one location, a New York institution — prices its Uber Eats menu almost exactly like its counter. The markup averages under 6 percent. And precisely because it is so restrained, Katz’s loses money on every sandwich it sends through the app.
KATZ’S DELICATESSEN (Lower East Side) — Deli / American. Case study #5 in a USA Times series auditing Uber Eats pricing. Prices compared between the restaurant’s own pickup-and-delivery menu and its Uber Eats storefront for the same address, 205 East Houston Street, on 14 July 2026.
Every case in this series so far has shown a restaurant marking up its delivery menu well above its counter: 30 percent at a Mexico City taqueria-adjacent spot, a flat 21 percent at a Mamoun’s two miles uptown, a variable 7-to-33 percent at The Halal Guys. Katz’s is the exception that proves the point.
A pastrami sandwich is $28.95 at the counter and $30.95 on Uber Eats — a $2 difference, about 7 percent. The Reuben moves from $29.95 to $31.95. Matzo ball soup rises 50 cents. Potato latkes, less than 3 percent. Across eight matched items the average markup is 5.7 percent, and nothing exceeds 7.2. Katz’s is charging delivery customers close to what it charges the tourists lined up inside.
Restraint, and what it costs
That restraint has a price, and Katz’s pays it. Uber’s commission on a New York restaurant runs up to 15 percent under the city’s cap, and higher once optional platform fees are added. A markup of under 6 percent does not come close to covering it. After Uber takes its share of the $30.95 pastrami, Katz’s is left with roughly $22 — about $7 less than the $28.95 it collects from a walk-in. On all eight items, the deli nets less on delivery than at its own counter.
Katz’s can afford that; the line out the door is not going anywhere. But it reveals the shape of the whole system. A restaurant that refuses to inflate its delivery menu simply eats the platform’s commission itself. A restaurant that inflates it passes the commission to the customer. Uber collects either way.
The number nobody sees
Set the cases side by side. Katz’s marks up about 6 percent. The Mamoun’s uptown marks up a flat 21. The Halal Guys, dish by dish, somewhere in between. Same city, same app, same week — and a spread of markup that a customer has no way to see, predict, or compare. Uber measures this gap for every restaurant, in a merchant metric it calls “Menu Markup.” It does not show the number to the person paying it.
And in every case, including this one, the customer still pays more on the app than at the counter, and then pays a delivery fee and a service fee on top.
The comparison: 8 items
| Item | Counter | Uber Eats | Markup |
|---|---|---|---|
| Corned Beef Sandwich | $27.95 | $29.95 | +7% |
| Brisket Sandwich | $27.95 | $29.95 | +7% |
| Pastrami Sandwich | $28.95 | $30.95 | +7% |
| Reuben | $29.95 | $31.95 | +7% |
| Square Potato Knish | $7.95 | $8.45 | +6% |
| Matzo Ball Soup | $9.95 | $10.45 | +5% |
| New York Cheesecake | $7.95 | $8.25 | +4% |
| Potato Latkes | $16.95 | $17.45 | +3% |
Counter prices from Katz’s own pickup-and-delivery menu; Uber Eats prices for the same Houston Street location, both captured 14 July 2026. Mean markup 5.7%, range 2.9–7.2%. Delivery and service fees are charged on top.
Method
Counter prices were read from Katz’s Delicatessen’s own first-party pickup-and-delivery menu; Uber Eats prices from its storefront for the same address (205 East Houston Street). Both captured 14 July 2026. Prices in U.S. dollars. Only items appearing on both menus were compared.
Katz’s Delicatessen and Uber have both been contacted for comment.
This report is part of a USA Times series auditing food-delivery pricing. Prices were collected by USA Times on the date noted, compared item by item against the restaurant’s own current menu, and reviewed by an editor before publication.
